Bottle crate of synthetic material



United States Patent 3,432,063 BOTTLE CRATE 0F SYNTHETIC MATERIAL Alexander Schoeller, Gottingen, Germany, assignor t0 Firma Alexander Schoeller & Co., Flaschenkastenwerk, Gottingen, Germany, a corporation of Germany Filed Apr. 26, 1965, Ser. No. 450,629 Claims priority, application Germany, Apr. 25, 1964,

Sch 35,044 US. Cl. 220-21 6 Claims Int. Cl. B65d 1/24, 57/00, 21/02 ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE of the contents.

The present invention relates to transport crates for bottles of any kind, made of molded plastic material, and more particularly to crates having a profile of a gripping rim consisting of a lateral, outwardly directed flange and having a bottom edge consisting of the same or similar profile and having outer faces which are from vertically or obliquely disposed ribs projecting to the outer limits of the crate.

Unlike bottle crates having such ribs, the aforementioned crates present the danger that the horizontally running flanges overlap or otherwise interengage during the transportation of the crates on roller-type conveyors so that the crates become mutually interengaged. Thereby the orderly transportation of the crates is seriously impaired, and is sometimes even made impossible.

Such a surmounting of crates occurs particularly in case of frequently occurring curvatures of the conveyor or in case of transportation stoppings, for instance, at the end of the conveyor. Also, when bottle crates are deposited on platforms, an expedient which is usually performed by machines and with a vertical component of movement, the horizontally running flanges may tend to get hooked into each other. The same may happen when the crates are removed from the platforms.

It is one object of the present invention to provide a bottle crate which obviates these difiiculties and drawbacks, and to provide crates for bottles of any kind which allow uninterrupted handling and processing.

It is another object of the present invention to provide bottle crates, which are not liable to mutual interengagement, so as to assure undisturbed transportation on conveyors and the like.

It is another object to provide guide faces running from the outer edges of the peripheral flanges to the outer surfaces of the crate.

For purposes of safe and simple piling or nesting of two or more crates, the present invention also provides, as one of its objects, means for immobilizing a crate with respect to another on top of which it has been placed. Several solutions and modifications are possible which will be fully explained in the present application.

According to one of the major features of the invention, the sides and/ or the front surfaces of the crates are provided with chamfered guide faces which run from the outer edges of the peripheral flanges to the outer surfaces of the crates.

Admittedly, bottle crates fitted with such guide faces can still be lifted relative to each other, however, no permanent, mutual interlocking will occur since the chamfered guide faces will always allow the crates to slide along each other with their flanges: upon discontinuing the stopping or the track curvature. Upon setting on platforms, the novel crates will slide into the proper position Without any disturbance and, in a similar fashion, upon lifting the same from the platform, adjacent crates are taken up.

There are several ways in which the guide faces can be positioned and formed. In a preferred embodiment, the present invention suggests to provide the guide faces in the form of small triangular studs. It is also suggested to provide the guide faces between the upper or gripping frames and the supports which connect said frames with the bottom portions of the crate.

According to another important feature of the invention, the chamfered guide faces perform another important function. Both during transportation and storage, the bottle crates are usually piled up or stacked above each other so as to save space. This arrangement, however, allows access only to the contents of the uppermost crate. During storage, the crates are usually stacked in an upright position. For the sale of the goods, particularly in self-service stores, the buyers should be afiforded the possibility to remove bottles from any crate of a pile without encountering difliculties. This may be necessary, for example, when different kinds of beer or other beverages are stored in the individual crates.

It is, therefore, customary to pile the bottle crates in a horizontal or lying position. It is important to ensure that the crates rest safely one above the other and that they cannot slide laterally, forwards or backwards. This, evidently, would endanger the store personnel and/or the buyer. Should a crate accidentally slide down from the top of a pile and drop, its contents may be shattered.

It has already been proposed to provide bores passing through the side walls of the bottle crates, for allowing pegs or the like members to be set across registering portions of two adjoining crates stacked one above the other. However, this kind of connecting the crates is relatively complicated, still the required pegs are not always available and are easily misplaced or lost.

According to yet another feature of the present invention, the bottle crates are provided with a U-profile serving as a gripping rim, open to the outside, wherein the vertical bases of the guide faces are dimensioned as to their length such with respect to the inner lumen of the U-profile, that the former become nested in the U-profile when lying crates are stacked, preventing thereby the shifting of the crates with respect to each other in a direction perpendicular to the gripping rim.

The present invention also contemplates to provide a break in the guide faces at the point of transition into the vertical outer wall, forming thereby lower stop edges. The crates are now incapable of sliding off each other, even on account of relatively strong jolts, because the stop edges of the guide faces lie against the inner surface of the lower U-profile flange.

With a view to preventing the movement of lying crates in the direction of the upper frame, a further, improved embodiment of the invention provides protrusions or recesses Within the U-profile of the gripping rim, displaced toward the guide faces, in the direction of the corners and/or centers of the crate walls These stops or recesses can be made of different forms. They may be in the form of recesses in the lower U-profile flange, the vertical length of the guide faces being somewhat longer than the width of the U-profile, minus the thickness of the lower U-profile flange. The lower ends of the guide faces, preferably provided with a stop ledge, may rest in the recesses while the walls of the latter serve as stops.

Another preferred expedient according to the present invention resides in providing these stops with chamfered or sloping faces running toward the gripping rim, for accommodating guide faces of a lying and stacked crate. As a matter of example, the side walls of the recesses may be slanting. According to the invention, the stops may preferably be provided with faces sloping perpendicular to the gripping rim, for guiding a crate stacked in a lying position. The sloping faces make for a safe sliding into the proper place of a crate even if it has not been properly set up.

With these and other objects in view, which will become apparent in the following detailed description, the present invention will be clearly understood in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which the only figure is a perspective view of a bottle transport crate according to the present invention.

Referring now to the drawing, the crate for bottles of any kind, preferably made from molded synthetic or plastic material, consists of an upper frame in the form of a gripping rim 1, a framework consisting of longitudinal and transverse walls 2, 3, respectively, and of a bottom frame 4 surrounding the framework. The frame elements 1 and 4 are interconnected by vertical supports 5 having inwardly directed ribs 6 with transitions to the aforementioned framework walls 2, 3. The corners of the crate are left free from the supports 5.

The supports 5 and the ribs 6 together form T-shaped profiles. The ri-b height gradually decreases from the framework walls 2, 3 to the top crate edge. Furthermore, the upper ends of the ribs 6 are rounded off so as to form guide faces 7 for the bottles; the ribs 6 terminate below the top edge of the crate and may serve as nesting faces 8 for a crate superposed in an upright position.

The bottom frame 4 consists of a continuous band free from vertical or chamfered outer ribs; its top and bottom edges are limited by reinforcing or stiffening flanges 9 and 10, respectively. In a similar manner, the upper or gripping frame 1 also has a U-shaped profile with outwardly directed flanges 11 and 12.

The framework walls 2, 3 inside the crate have approximately the same heights as the bottom frame 4; between their intersecting points 19 and the transition into the inner surface of the bottom frame, or the ribs of the supports, and the adjoining intersecting points, these walls are cut out toward the crate bottom. In this manner, the upper edges of the Walls 2, 3 form chamfered or sloping guide faces for the bottles, facilitating their insertion. In

the region of their intersecting points 19, the framework walls are cut out from the bottom. This saves material without appreciably impairing the rigidity of the crate. The crate can also be cleaned much easier by the provision of these cut-outs.

From the outer edge of the bottom frame flange 11, chamfered or sloping guide faces 26 and 26a lead to the outer faces of the supports 5. The sloping faces prevent the crates from being interengaged by way of their horizontal outer ribs or flanges, which might happen during transportation on conveyors.

The sloping guide faces 26 preferably consist of narrow, tapering, triangular studs. Alternatively, trapezoidshaped members with sloping faces 26a are shown on the lateral crate flange 11. At the points of transition between the supports 5 and the outer crate Walls, breaking points are provided for the faces 26a by forming low stop edges 27.

The vertical length (measured vertically when the crate is in the position of the drawing) or bases of the guide faces 26 and 26a, running to the lower edges or stop edges 27, can be made somewhat longer than the inner length or width of the U-profile, minus the thickness of the lower U-profile flange 11. The lower flange 11 is provided in the crate side walls with recesses 28 above the guide faces 26a. In order to compensate for the weakening of the flange 11 by the recesses 28, the guide faces 26 underneath the recesses are widened and have a smooth transition into the flange 11. Similar recesses could, of course, be provided at the guide faces 26 on the frontal flange 11.

When piling up side to side lying crates so that the framework 2 is exposed, the guide faces 26a enter the U-profile of the gripping rim 1, and with their stop edges 27 into the recesses 28, preventing thereby a mutual shifting of the crates in the direction of the gripping rim, as Well as perpendicularly thereto.

The side walls of the recesses 28 are shaped into sloping faces 29 extending in the direction of the upper frame 1, the faces 29 providing lateral guidance of the guide faces 26a when lying crates are stacked above each other. Even an improperly applied or superposed crate will safely slide into the proper place 'by the aid of the sloping faces 29. For a better illustration, the recesses 28 have been exaggerated in the drawing.

It is customary to store the bottle crates in a lying position, with the long side walls down, and to transport them only in an upright position, i.e., with the front sides of several crates abutting on a conveyor. The guide faces 26a are, therefore, provided with stop edges 27 only on the lateral surfaces of the crates, and similarly, the recesses 28 are provided only in the U-profile flanges 11 of the lateral or side surfaces, as illustrated. This prevents any attempted positioning or piling of the crate after attempted insert, accidental on an adjoining crate during transportation of conveyors, by way of the stop edges 27.

I claim:

ll. A molded plastic bottle transport case, comprising a continuous, rigid, upper frame,

at least one flange projecting outwardly from said upper frame in peripheral portions thereof,

a continuous, planar, rigid bottom frame spaced apart from said upper frame,

integral partition means disposed inside of said bottom frame and including longitudinal and transverse walls respectively spaced apart at predetermined distances, said partition means being adapted to define compartments and to hold bottles in said cases,

at least two guide faces on at least two opposite sides of said cases sloping from said upper frame toward said bottom frame, for preventing adjacent crates from being entangled during transportation,

spaced wall portions rigidly connecting and spacing said frames, and disposed at the sides of said case and in which,

said guide faces extend from said at least one flange of said upper frame and said wall portions toward said bottom frame, and have a length complementary to said upper frame for releasably engaging another crate stacked thereabove in side to side position so that said compartments of said crates are exposed for access thereto,

said guide faces being in the form of narrow, tapering studs projecting outwardly from said wall portions and horizontally spaced apart from each other, said studs having lower edges facing said lower frame, said upper frame having spaced apart flanges forming an outwardly directed U-shaped gripping rim, the length of said studs being slightly longer than the distance between said flanges minus the thickness of the lower flange, and said lower flange having recesses complementary to said lower edges of said studs and being located at points intermediate the corners of said crate, and

whereby said crates can be stacked in side by side lying position, with the studs and lower flange of one crate interengaged in the U-shaped rim and said lower edge in the recesses of another crate.

2. The transport crate, as set forth in claim 1, in which said upper frame has spaced apart flanges forming an outwardly directed U-shaped gripping rim, and

the length of said studs is shorter than the distance between said flanges,

whereby crates can be stacked in side by side lying position, with the studs of one crate interengaged in the U-shaped rim of another crate.

3. The transport crate, as set forth in claim 2, in which said studs have a substantially trapezoid cross-section and a lower edge facing said bottom frame.

4. The transport crate, as set forth in claim 1, in which said recesses have faces sloping toward said upper frame, for accommodating said lower edges of said studs.

5. The transport crate, as set forth in claim 2, in which said studs are provided only in two opposite long sides of the crate,

whereby the latter may be stacked in an interengaged manner With said two long sides facing each other in said one and said another crates, while the same crates may be transported without interengagement when the remaining opposite short sides face each other.

6. The transport crate, as set forth in claim 1, wherein said recesses are located vertically above said studs, and

said studs are widened and have a smooth transition into said lower flange for added strength.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,148,797 9/1964 Cloyd 220-72 X FOREIGN PATENTS 624,522 3/1963 Great Britain. 940,041 10/ 1963 Great Britain. 624,522 3/1963 Belgium.

JOSEPH R. LECLAIR, Primary Examiner. G. E. LOWRANCE, Assistant Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R. 

